Estomor
Estomor is an Imperial Hive World located in the Sephadollion Sector of the Ultima Segmentum. Estomor is an old and rich world with roots stretching back to the founding of the Sephadollion Sector. In addition to this Estomor's plentiful deposits of radioactive materials have insured that it is a wealthy and influential planet of the Sector. However for all Estomor's riches and esteem it suffers daily from endemic mutation, xenophobia and a corrupt, totalitarian government. On Estomor genetic purity and physical perfection are the primary standards by which one is judged, and those that fall short may be held in contempt, or even find their lives forfeit. Climate and Geography Estomor is a hot, mostly barren world. The planet is a short distance from its native star, and as a result the planet is frequently blasted with solar radiation. As a result when the natives venture outside of their Hive Cities they are required to wear protective clothing in order to survive the extreme heat. The more dangerous and valuable aspect of Estomor is the local minerals. Estomor is a planet that is rich in radioactive materials such as uranium, plutonium and a range of other substances, some of which are extremely rare and exotic. As a result of this, nearly the entire surface of the planet gives off radiation of some kind, with the level of radiation being dependent on the concentration of nearby radioactive materials. History Society The people of Estomor live in great, radiation shielded Hive Cities across the planet. The lives of the people revolve around mining and refining the various radioactive substances around the planet. The masses toil daily in dangerous mines to extract arguably even more dangerous minerals, which are then sent back to the Hive Cities to be refined in preparation for being exported offworld. This highly valuable tithe has made Estomor rich over the eons as the planet recieves ample resources in return for maintain the flow of materials. However this wealth is highly concentrated amongst the nobility. The planet's peasant class live bleak, miserable lives and almost never get to reap the benefits of the prosperity the planet enjoys. Estomor's various Hive Cities and Mines are connected via a series of underground tunnels. Travel between them is possible via the surface, but it is made substantially more difficult and dangerous as a result fo the planets extremely high surface termperature. Anyone roaming the surface without protective gear would most certainly die as the air temperature is hot enough to ignite ones body. However what the people of Estomor truly fear is the radiation. While their Hive Cities are shielded from radiation, maintenance of the poorer areas of these cities are notoriously sub-par. As a result minute amounts of radiation has been known to leak through the shielding in certain areas. The personal protection worn by the miners and those working within the refineries are also known to occasionally be faulty. As a result the population routinely exposed to radiation, either via their owrk or due ot shielding failures. This has resulted in a far increased occurence of mutation among the population. One might think that in a planet where mutation occurs as commonly as it does on Estomor that the people might begin to understand mutants, but mutants are violently purged whenever found. Even being related to a known mutant can be cause for execution. In contrast to the average masses the upper classes of the planet live fairly good lives. In the wealthier areas of the Hive Cities the radiation shielding is better maintained and thus the occupants rarely have to concern themselves with exposure. Among the Nobles these things are a far distant concern as they live lives drenched in security and luxury that their planet's wealth affords them. Amongst the nobility the only real concerns are maintain their tithe, ensuring that mutants are routinely purged, the games of courtly politics and perhaps most importantly that their genetic lines remain pure. Culture The culture of Estomor has much in common with other Hive Worlds of the Imperium, possessing an affluent noble class ruling over a downtrodden peasant class. Where Estomor differs from many other worlds is in their extreme, some would say irrational, devotion to the genetic purity of their population, and to conforming with their societies views on physical perfection. This is doubtless a reaction to the population's long term exposure to nuclear radiation, and the planets constant struggle with endemic mutant infestation. It is needless to say that upon most Imperial worlds mutants are held in contempt, and can hope only to be treated as opressed, second-class citizens under the best of circumstances. However constant fighting against the mutant swarms has intensified the hatred of physical divergence among the people of Estomor. Even small, seemingly benign mutations are met with outright hatred, and are often enough to execute the individual that possesses them as well as their immediate family. After all if one's bloodline produces amutant then surely it has become corrupted beyond salvation. The hatred of physical divergence is so intense upon Estomor that not only are mutations harshly punished, but even certain uncommon yet unspectacular physcial traits are punished under law. Heterochromia, albinism, certain birthmarks and even specific hues of skin coloration are among a long list of traits that are deemed punishable under Estomorian law. The occurence of these traits are taken as a sign that one's bloodline is beginning to go sour, and will eventually result in the emergence of mutants. Thus while some of these traits will result in obligatory execution or separation from the general population, all them them will result in a loss of status for the individual bearing them as well as their family. It is clear that on Estomor the purity of one's lineage is considered to be of utmost importance. For the peasantry it is a matter of survival, for impurity brings punishment. However for the nobles it is a matter of pride and standing. The nobility of Estomor and those that serve directly under them live in areas of the Hive that possess far better radiation shielding, and almost never work with the raw materials mined and refined by the peasants. Thus they need not fear the mutational effects of Estomor's environment. Yet they too suffer their own genetic ills. The nobles of Estomor maintain strict breeding standards among themselves. Whom they bear children with is carefully regulated to make sure that certain traits for which a family is known continue to occur, while other traits are rooted out lest they bring shame to one's noble house. As a result of these eugenic practices all of the noble houses of Estomor suffer from a great deal of inbreeding, which has oft caused problems among the families. These issues, along with the frequent purging of Estomor's peasant population has created a very odd situation. The people of Estomor are extremely Xenophobic, not only of Xenos, mutants and Abhumans, but of anyone not born on Estomor. The government knows that other worlds do not maintain as strict a control on their genetic heritage, and thus offworlders are often shunned less they be carrying some deviance in their blood. In spite of this Estomor requires the presence of offworlders to survive. Estomor has a standing pact with the Forgeworld of Dedriton. The Adeptus Mechanicus sends a goodly portion of their Genetors and other Techpriests of a more biological bent to serve on Estomor. These Genetors monitor the gene pool of Estomor, especially the bloodlines of the nobles, and works to make corrections when and wherever possible. The Techpriests provide gene-therapy to the nobles, monitor both high-born and low-born alike for any "deviances", and expunge them whenever possible. The methods for performing this final task vary, and the Genetors have been known to do everything from simple slaughter to engineering viruses that only target specific genes. The noble families also make use of their surgical kills in order to remove any unsightly traits among their heirs. In return for the Techpriets' services Estomor provides Dedriton with a little extra material than is demanded in their tithe, and of course the techpriests are free to study the population's genome as they see fit. In addition to this the planetary Government is often forced to bring in offworlders to replace losses in their workforce and to slightly increase biodiversity. At times Estomor's purges against all things mutant leaves their population, and more importantly their workforce highly depleted. In order to address this issue Estomor regularly imports slave labor from the Imperium at large. These slaves reinforce Estomor's industry with able-bodied workers, and their gene-pool with healthy human stock. Naturally Estomor's government pays extra to make sure that all slaves are in keeping with their strict standards. In addition ot this sometimes a noble families inbreeding damages their genetics so thuroughly that the only recourse is to bring in spouses from offworld. A notably rare occurence, and one that brings with it a modicum of shame. In these cases the spouse is carefully chosen from offworld nobility whose bloodline is deemed worthy enough to be tolerated on Estomor. Government The planetary government of Estomor is a totalitarian monarchy. Upon the planet the privilege and authority of the ruling nobles are absolute. Every major branch, division or instituition of Estomor's planetary Government is either staffed or headed by the nobility, giving them ultimate power over their worlds infrastructure. The Plantary Governor of Estomor is officially titled the High Potentate of the Holy Emperor's Domain of Estomor, though more commonly simply referred to as the King of Estomor. On estomor it is believed that the rule of the king, and of the aristocracy is the Emperor's divine will. The nobles firmly believe that they and their families were hand-picked by the Emperor himself to oversee his domain. As such there is a general intolerance towards civil disobedience and rebellion on Estomor. Sadly such disobedience is common to a point. The conditions in which the peasnats live and work are atrocious even by the standards of most Imperial Hive Worlds, thus the peasantry have every incentive to hate the ruling class. In response to such obstinance the government of Estomor cracks down with merciless brutality. So much as hinting at disobedience can result in punishment. The nobles go to great lengths to monitor the peasants for any sign of issue. Estomor's government has whole divisions whose purpose is to monitor the lya population for any sign of rebellion or genetic deviance. The peasants are forced to suffer from regular review where their opinions and disposition are questioned, and they are forced to give up blood samples to test for genetic deviances or illnesses. In the event that one or more of the peasantry are found wanting they are often subject to horrible ordeals, and may be outright executed. Estomor's government is more than willing to sacrifice whole segments of their population in order to maintain stability and the status quo. After all Estomor's rulers are wealthy and influential enough to acquire massive amounts of slave labor from offworld in order to compensate for any loss of population. Military As a totalitarian state Estomor's military and police branches are one and the same. The world's Planetary Defense Force goes by many names official and unofficial. The Royal Guard, the Guardians of Order and Purity, the Sentinels of Estomor, the Kinslayers. However the populace knows them best as the Blood Scourges. Estomor maintains a powerful military force not only to defend against outside invasion, but also to put down rebellion and exterminate the mutant hordes that develope within Estomor's vast irradiated plains and underground caverns. Since both are painfully common the military is highly active. For many Estomorians joining the Blood Scourges is the only hope of escaping a life of back breaking labor and oppression, as well as a slow painful death by radiation poisoning or cancer. The officers in the military are drawn exclusively from the nobles and Upper Hivers, while the enlisted are drawn from the lower levels. In spite of the chance to escape a life of virtual slavery most Lower Hivers would be hard pressed to join. Most citezens of Estomor have suffered under the boots of the Royal Guard, and they are viewed with fear and loathing by the general populace. Enlistment into the ranks of the military is often viewed as a betrayal by the family and neighbors of the enlistee. The Blood Scourges are well equiped and brutally efficient. Years of putting down rebellion have made them skilled at urban warfare, riot suppression and counter-insurgency. Blood Scourges go into battle equiped with expensive Carapace Armor and high-end Lasguns acquired for them through the use of their rulers' blood money. The Blood Scourges are pitiless in their application of force, not caring about casualties so long as the objective is complete. They are also skilled at hunting down mutants, recidivists and traitors that seek to flee or hide from the authorities. Quotes Category:Worlds Category:Imperium Category:Hive Worlds